clam

noun

/klæm/

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a shellfish that can be eaten. It has a shell in two parts that can open and close.
- clam chowder/soup
- The moment I mentioned the children he closed up like a clam (= became silent and refused to discuss the topic).
Topics Fish and shellfishc2
Word Originearly 16th cent.: apparently from earlier clam ‘a clamp’, from Old English clam, clamm ‘a bond or bondage’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch klemme, German Klemme, also to clamp.

clam

verb

/klæm/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they clam	/klæm/ /klæm/
he / she / it clams	/klæmz/ /klæmz/
past simple clammed	/klæmd/ /klæmd/
past participle clammed	/klæmd/ /klæmd/
-ing form clamming	/ˈklæmɪŋ/ /ˈklæmɪŋ/

Phrasal Verbs

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Word Originearly 16th cent.: apparently from earlier clam ‘a clamp’, from Old English clam, clamm ‘a bond or bondage’, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch klemme, German Klemme, also to clamp.